Promoting sun protection in elementary schools and child care settings: The SunSafe project

Elementary schools and child care settings in rural New Hampshire participa ted in a sun protection program that reached more than 4, 200 children. The program,vas part of a successful multifaceted community intervention targe ting children ages 2-9. Program components included curricular materials, t raining and support for school/child care staff and parent outreach. Evalua tion showed good uptake of the curriculum by teachers and child care provid ers, improvements in sun protection policy in participating schools and chi ld care settings, and significant knowledge and attitude improvements in fo urth grade children tested, as well as actual behavior change. The study hi ghlighted the importance of flexible, developmentally appropriate curricula r materials and active engagement of principals and directors in policy rev iew. In addition, for parent outreach programs to be successful, children n eeded to participate.